Angelika Hartmann
Angelika Hartmann is the leader of V-14, the direct commander of its Alpha Team and executive boss. After the death of Veritas, she becomes the second Keeper of the Black Blood Sect. Personality Angelika is a rather formal woman, focusing more on her profession and business more so than anything else. Most of the time, she behaves in a calm and collected manner. As business-like as she is, she is willing to slip out of this at times for the sake of having fun with her colleagues and subordinates. But she will be quick to toss this demeanor and regress back to her more formal attitude in the event that business needs to be tended to. She is a competent and reliable leader and commander on the field, keeping herself level and rational even in the midst of combat. However, it is at this stage that she can also become cold, ruthless and sadistic to her foes. She doesn't hesitate to taunt and mock them for the sake of wearing down and her amusement. In addition, she subtly encourages her allies in order to create as much carnage as possible, showing approval for particularly brutal demonstrations of murder. Her aggression is also a drive in her decisions involving dealing with her enemies in both tactical situations and direct combat - a trait she carried ever since she was a Dragon of the Inner CircleThe War of Four: The Alliance of Blood and Shadows and has become more prominent throughout the fight with the Inner Circle.The War of Four: Seeds of Revelation It is noted that she has a rather dry and morbid sense of humor, something that has been expressed and reference more than once. During her younger years, Angelika was known for her pride, arrogance and almost zealous loyalty when she served as a Dragon in the Inner Circle. Although she was exceptional in the art of assassination, her aggression almost always led her into constant, direct confrontation. These traits ended up being her downfall and the cause for a mental breakdown after she barely escaped the organization with her life. During the V-14's run against the Inner Circle, this arrogance and pride starts to show itself again in small amounts until her defeat by Ryūketsu Ōtamu.The War of Four: The Eye of the Storm Her approval of brutality, her dry and sometimes cynical sense can also get her into trouble with her more moral and ethical colleagues.The War of Four: To the Victor Despite these flaws, one of Angelika's strongest positive traits is her sense of camaraderie. She is fair and reasonable to her subordinates, being so even during her time as a criminal. Over time, she even eventually sees her underlings as "family" and openly regards them as such.The Cauldron of Black: All-Out Assault Background Little is known about Angelika's history, and hints are subtly expressed during the times that she appears. The most prominent of these hints was that she served as an assassin, although it is unknown as to what organization she served or if she served any at all. Further implications point to her history being involved with the likes of Inner Circle personnel Yashin Shiyōnin, Ryūketsu Ōtamu, hinting that she may have served the Inner Circle prior to defection. These hints are eventually confirmed. In her young adult years, Angelika was a mercenary for the Inner Circle and served under the 1st Horseman. She became one of its most proficient members, her combat skill and expertise as an assassin and infiltrator earning her the title of Dragon within the month that she had finished her training. During this stage of her life in the Inner Circle, she came across Asuka Sakamoto (who was the owner of a dojo teaching the ways of the Tamashī no Sonshitsu as well as a babysitter). The two met while Asuka was baby-sitting a particular child, and they ended up settling down and talking with one another. Despite Angelika's cold and sociopathic nature, Asuka's words managed to find a way around the hardened exterior and through to the other woman. After the conversation, the two parted ways for the time being. Angelika continued to serve in the Inner Circle with zealous enthusiasm, and eventually she became one of the most dangerous and notorious members known. Eventually, her career popularity gained the interest of Ryūketsu, who was an agent inserted into Soul Society by Bokyaku. During one of her missions, she was ambushed by him when he was under the guise of a lowly assassin for the purpose of testing her abilities. In the struggle, she proved to be more dangerous than expected and forced him into a retreat. In another mission, she engaged in a one-man-attack on an unnamed criminal organization the Inner Circle wanted eliminated. It was here that she confronted Victor Fürst, who was serving as an undercover agent to secretly monitor the same organization. In order to prove his loyalty, Victor engaged Angelika in a ferocious gunfight. The outcome is implied to be a draw, and the fate of the unnamed organization was left to speculation. In yet another mission, she was responsible for the release of the Hollow plague-virus that resulted in the Mourning War - a catastrophe which nearly destroyed the Soul Society before it was quelled by 9th Division forces. Her service under the Inner Circle finally ended when she discovered the implants within her teeth set to explode by remote in the case that she be captured or killed. Upon further analysis, she discovered that the Inner Circle were slowly converting the mercenaries under their command into full soldiers for a plot to take full control over the spiritual dimensions. Indignant about the idea of them using her as a tool for their means, Angelika found a way to remove the explosive implants and confronted the leaders. This ended in failure, and she was nearly captured by Inner Circle forces as she was forced to escape their HQ. Shaken over the brutal experience and broken over the loss of her prestige, Angelika was approached by Asuka once more while in a near-catatonic depression. Feeling sympathy for the nearly broken woman, Asuka took her back to the dojo and let her stay for the time being for recovery. Slowly but surely, her mentor-like attitude and comforting approaches helped Angelika return to her old sense of self. However, she lost her sense of pride and arrogance, coming to the conclusion that her previous titles weren't worth it. During her recovery, Asuka gave her a chance to study Tamashī no Sonshitsu under her as a means to pass the time. It was in that same time that Asuka introduced the idea of becoming a member of the Black Blood Sect, something that could easily be obtained by her due to her notorious status as a master assassin. Having felt connected to the woman that had treated her so kindly, Angelika accepted both offers. When she was accepted, she was allowed funding to found what would be the V-14 mercenary organization. Asuka was nominated as leader of V-14's Gamma Team later on. Synopsis *Signed In Red: Rise of Valentine *Revelation of My Heart: The Murderous Truth Takahashi Arc *Bleach: Shihai no Tsumi: Old Stomping Grounds *Bleach: Shihai no Tsumi: The Opening Moves *Bleach: Shihai no Tsumi: Countdown to the End *Bleach: Shihai no Tsumi: Vengeance Unattained *Bleach: Shihai no Tsumi: Pride on the Blade Children of Izanami Arc *Los niños de Izanami: Sociedad la Tradición *Los Niños de Izanami: Separación War of Four arc *The War of Four: The Hunter and the Hunted *The War of Four: The Alliance of Blood and Shadows *The War of Four: Courts and Circles (cameo) *The War of Four: Dark Revelations *The War of Four: An Eagle's Cry *The War of Four: The Eye of the Storm *The War of Four: Recollection *The War of Four: Recovery *The War of Four: Crossing the Wire Post-War of Four *I've Come For You, An Inevitable Return Cauldron of Black arc *The Cauldron of Black: Unite the Chosen *The Cauldron of Black: Eyes on the Prize *The Cauldron of Black: All-Out Assault *The Cauldron of Black: The Battle of Principle *The Cauldron of Black: Through The Looking Glass Equipment HCA-50 Kidō Pistol: Angelika's secondary combat weapon. It is a high-caliber weapon and boasts the most attack power out of Kidō sidearms. When a bullet is fired from the gun and hits the target, the energy expands itself in a miniature shockwave. This results in explosive damage done to the target. However, only masters are capable of utilizing it without risk to themselves or their allies. It was temporarily disabled by Sakura Keikai in her confrontation with Angelika, but shown to be later restored.The War of Four: The Hunter and the Hunted The Missionary: Angelika's sometimes primary and signature weapon. A very powerful sniper rifle, it is primarily used for stealth and assassination missions. Katana: Angelika's personal melee combat weapon kept sheathed and holstered on her hip. It has a gray-blue hilt with diamond-shaped designs going straight down the middle and a bronze guard. The sword is shattered in her fight with Ryūketsu Ōtamu.The War of Four: The Eye of the Storm Eyepatch: Angelika's current eyepatch serves as a power inhibitor for a special ability that has yet to be revealed. The original patch was for simply covering a wound after the eye was cut open by Sayama Makoto. How she obtained this power is unknown. However, the hidden ability seems to strike varying degrees of fear into Hyōryū Fūsoku, Oliver Holmes, and Victor Fürst, with all three of them normally acting fearless in the heat of combat.The War of Four: The Alliance of Blood and Shadows Powers & Abilities Great Spiritual Energy: Angelika possesses a considerable amount of spiritual energy, which is on par with that of the common Captain's. Because of her style as an assassin, she never allows herself to exert it in combat. She possesses exceptional control of it, suppressing it to the point where even Shindō Takuji's Tamenkyōme is unable to differentiate her from a regular Soul.The War of Four: The Hunter and the Hunted Master Swordsmanship Specialist: Being a practitioner of the Tamashī no Sonshitsu sword style as well as a former student of Asuka Sakamoto, Angelika possesses immense skill in the art of swordsmanship. Her fighting style relies on speed and evasion, depending on the occasional open holes in her opponent's guard in order for her to attack more effectively. She utilizes the Iaido style more than anything else when dealing with a lone enemy. She can cut down opponents within a single swing of her blade. This skill is rarely seen on the battlefield, and she seems to prefer utilizing firearms.Los niños de Izanami: Sociedad la TradiciónLos Niños de Izanami: SeparaciónThe War of Four: The Hunter and the Hunted Master Assassin: Although her days as an assassin are long gone, Angelika's experience has far from faded away from her. She can kill effectively in a matter of seconds, needing only her mind as well as any tools around her to accomplish the job. She is capable of turning a simple object such as a beer bottle into a tool for mutilation, impaling it through a victim's head with natural ease.Signed In Red: Rise of Valentine In her younger years, she was marked as one of the best assassins of the Inner Circle and was promoted to Dragon because of her skill and expertise. Enhanced Endurance: As a Shingami, Angelika is capable of withstanding blows that would normally severely wound or kill a human being. She withstood a beer bottle thrown at the back of her head and was still able to retain composure.Signed In Red: Rise of Valentine She seems to have a high tolerance of pain, keeping her composure even when one of her eyes were cut out by Sayama Makoto.Revelation of My Heart: The Murderous Truth She repeats this when her arm is disabled by Sakura Keikai, though it is unknown whether or not Sakura's attack was meant to cause pain. A more recent example is when she takes an electrified punch from Heigo Sureiyā's modified arm that would've crippled anyone else and still stand to attack.The War of Four: The Hunter and the Hunted Immense Strength: Though it is unknown to what degree, Angelika possesses an above average amount of strength, overtaking a man a few times her size.Signed In Red: Rise of Valentine Master Marksmanship: Angelika possesses a great amount of skill in the usage of Kidō weaponry and is capable of terrifyingly accurate shots. She can hit her targets and switch between them without missing.The War of Four: The Hunter and the Hunted The Shadow The Shadow is an entity sealed within Angelika's mind and body for her punishment for her crimes against the innocent of humanity. During the Plinian Movement, Angelika's mind was cluttered with the continuous thoughts of others, stressing her to the point of her begging for it to stop. An "overseer" of the merged souls saw her plight, and due to the Movement's reversal being imminent, promised her relief from the stress of the other beings within her mind. The Shadow was the price for it, meant to punish her for her crimes until she accepted responsibility for what she did. Although meant to force Angelika to mentally relive her immoral actions through the eyes of her victims, the Shadow can also aid Angelika in order to preserve her life as well as her sentence. Because of its power, she only allows herself to release the seal in the most extreme of times. When the seal is removed, the Shadow proceeds to take over her emotional state of being as well as the majority of her body. While in this state, Angelika's sadistic and murderous emotions are amplified, and she holds little to no regard for mercy. *'Warped Spiritual Energy:' Whenever the Shadow manifests itself or exhibits influence over Angelika's person, the aura it produces can cause psychological damage to any entities unfortunate to be around it. The extent of its power can affect even the likes of the Hankami, all of which have a certain degree of supernatural psychological resistance. This aura can effectively render victims mentally broken without having to unleash its full presence. It can violently distort the environment around it, and once its actual energy manifests, transform and corrupt the area further. The full capability of the Shadow's power is to the extent that even the Hankami are fearful of it. *'Tentacles:' The Shadow manifests itself in the form of mainly massive tentacles made of its own energy. These tentacles are capable of ripping through any defense made by the enemy due to their otherworldly origins within the Void. They move erratically and irregularly as well as aggressively and relentlessly, making it extremely difficult to track and perceive them. They can be summoned in high numbers from Angelika's body, allowing for attacks en masse. Whatever they come into contact with is instantly corrupted and forced under its will, making even glancing blows deadly. *'Illusions:' The Shadow can cast illusions and effectively distort the way that the target sees and perceives the world around it. These illusions are extremely potent, capable of controlling and corrupting a target with just the need of the Shadow's presence alone. The differences between the illusions that the Shadow produces from other illusionary techniques is that the Shadow's illusions can actually start to eat at the mind little by little. Even if a target finds itself sane within the illusion, it loses sanity outside until eventually its mind is completely broken. Trivia *Angelika's unofficial theme is [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uiTtWnx_rjY "Disposition" by Tool]. References Category:Female Category:Rogue Shinigami Category:Villain Category:Antagonists Category:Protagonists Category:Character